Airbnb introduces the Bélo: the story of a symbol of belonging

The residence-to-rental app Airbnb has a brand new logo, and it's stirring up some serious controversy.

The circle within an upside-down heart shape definitely brings naughty bits to mind, on that we can all agree. So what's the debate? WHICH PART IS IT?

Literally no private parts have been left un-discussed; male, female, front, back, top, bottom, who knows?!

Airbnb claims that this was unintentional, and that instead the image stands for four different values:

The logo is called the Belo, and is meant to represent belonging. A little readjusting of the logo can represent a happy person, a location ping, a heart, and an A. This is meant to be more than just a logo, but a symbol representing all things cool and underground. Here is an explanation via the Airbnb blog:

"It’s a symbol for people who want to try a new tea they’ve never heard of from a village they couldn’t find on the map. It’s a symbol for going where the locals go—the cafe that doesn’t bother with a menu, the dance club hidden down a long alleyway, the art galleries that don’t show up in the guidebooks. It’s a symbol for people who want to welcome into their home new experiences, new cultures, and new conversations."

We have to admit that the idea is sweet, and the symbol is actually pretty clever. But we still can't help but wonder how not one single person over at Airbnb said "Dude! That totally looks like a..." (it's like a choose your own adventure!), when everyone else in the world noticed.